Architecting RAN Slicing for URLLC: Design Decisions and Open Issues

The Fifth Generation of mobile networks is emerging as a key enabler for Ultra Reliable and Low Latency Communications. However, to effectively design and provide safety-critical applications through mobile systems, many research issues still need to be deeply investigated. The most important ones include: (1) the dynamic and flexible management of radio resources of a new Radio Access Network jointly used by many virtual mobile operators, (2) the optimized and realtime configuration of network slices, and (3) the harmonious integration of Multi-access Edge Computing services. Starting from the efficient methodologies and solutions available in the current state of the art, this position paper sheds some important basis for the design of a comprehensive architecture enabling Radio Access Network slicing for Ultra Reliable and Low Latency Communications, including design criteria, system components and their baseline interactions, and critical open issues to be investigated in future research initiatives.